had legal residence status in Thailand. Many members of ‘hill tribes’ were unable to meet the documentary conditions for registration of a birth. These included possession by at least one parent of an ID card, and possession of a household registration document and an official birth notification. If parents did not manage to register the birth within 15 days, additional requirements for late birth registration included the production of a witness to the birth. ‘Hill tribes’ therefore faced many obstacles to civil registration because they did not speak Thai, were unfamiliar with Thai law and procedures, had limited literacy, and did not give birth in medical facilities and therefore were not issued with birth notifications. Because they lived in geographically remote locations, furthermore, available government services were sparse and it was both difficult and expensive for members of ‘hill tribes’ to reach civil registration offices. Finally, there was little awareness in most communities of the importance of civil registration and some reluctance about approaching the authorities. The Government has addressed several of the causes of statelessness by reforming the legislative framework and introducing legal provisions that help reduce statelessness. In 2005, responding to concerns expressed by the late King Bhumibol that certain groups in Thailand experienced unequal treatment and lacked legal status, the Cabinet adopted a National Strategy on Administration of Legal Status and Rights of Persons. Following changes in the National Legislative Assembly in 2006 and concerted advocacy by civil society, Thailand’s civil registration and nationality laws were reformed in 2008. The Civil Registration Act was amended with retroactive effect to allow all children born in Thailand to have their birth registered, regardless of the nationality or legal status of their parents. The 2008 amendments to the Nationality Act provided a route to restore the nationality of those who had been deprived of theirnationality or had been unable to acquire a nationality as a result of the 1972 Decree. The reform allowed those born in Thailand before 1992 who were not Thai citizens to acquire Thai nationality by application if they could produce evidence that they were born and subsequently domiciled in Thailand.73 Thailand’s current nationality law on the acquisition of nationality at birth combines jus sanguinis and jus soli principles. Children born to one or more Thai parents in Thailand or abroad, and children born in Thailand to non-Thai parents with permanent residence, automatically acquire nationality at birth. Children born to non-Thai parents, including stateless parents, who do not have permanent residency status, must apply for Thai nationality and meet certain eligibility criteria. These are set out in amendments to the nationality law in 2008 and a Cabinet Resolution issued by the Royal Thai Government in December 2016. The 2016 Cabinet Resolution states that children are eligible to apply for Thai nationality if: (1) they were born in Thailand to parents from ethnic minority groups, were registered by the Ministry of Interior, and have lived in Thailand for not less than 15 years; or (2) they were born in Thailand to other groups of aliens and have graduated from a university or its equivalent. Where applicants have not yet graduated, the Ministry of the Interior examines their cases individually. Abandoned children whose parents are unknown can also apply if they are certified to be abandoned by the relevant agency under the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security and have lived in Thailand for not less than 10 years.74 Birth registration and birth certificates are therefore important proofs of entitlement to nationality under the current law. Measures taken Several measures have been implemented by the Royal Thai Government to improve birth registration coverage in communities affected by statelessness and in other groups that are marginalized and hard to reach. These measures include: (1) law reform and related technical instructions; (2) development of an online birth registration programme that links hospitals and district registration offices; (3) action to build the capacity of local civil registration officials; (4) raising awareness, including by establishing community networks and a dedicated Government website on nationality matters.75 73 L. van Waas et al., Researching the nexus between statelessness and human trafficking: The example of Thailand, (Wolf Legal Publishers, 2015), pp. 88-91. 74 UNHCR, #IBelong Campaign Update, April 2017, at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/58eb44564.html. 75 See Ministry of Foreign Affairs: ‘Thailand has withdrawn its reservation to Article 7 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which guarantees the right of the child to be registered immediately after birth, the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality’. At: http://goo.gl/P34Wiy. 24 CAMPAIGN TO END STATELESSNESS WITHIN 10 YE ARS